European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society
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Trunk stability requires muscle stiffness associated with appropriate timing and magnitude of activation of muscles. Abnormality of muscle function has been implicated as possible cause or consequence of back pain. This experimental study compared trunk muscle activation and responses to transient force perturbations in persons with and without self-reported history of low back pain. ⋯ The likelihood of muscle responses to perturbations was not significantly different between the two groups. The findings were consistent with the hypothesis that LBP subjects employed muscle activation in a quasi-static task and preactivation prior to a perturbation in an attempt to stiffen and stabilize the trunk. However, interpretation of the findings was complicated by the fact that LBP subjects generated lesser efforts, and it was not known whether this resulted from anatomical differences (e.g., muscle atrophy) or reduced motivation (e.g., pain avoidance).
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The aim of the study is to determine if leg pain can be caused by contralateral lumbar disk herniation and if intervention from only the herniation side would suffice in these patients. Five patients who had lumbar disk herniations with predominantly contralateral symptoms were operated from the side of disk herniation without exploring or decompressing the symptomatic side. Patients were evaluated pre- and postoperatively. ⋯ Our data clears that sciatica can be caused by contralateral lumbar disk herniation. When operation is considered, intervention only from the herniation side is sufficient. It is probable that traction rather than direct compression is responsible from the emergence of contralateral symptoms.
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Degenerated intervertebral disc has lost its normal architecture, and there are changes both in the nuclear and annular parts of the disc. Changes in cell shape, especially in the annulus fibrosus, have been reported. During degeneration the cells become more rounded, chondrocyte-like, whereas in the normal condition annular cells are more spindle shaped. ⋯ In the anterior area of the annulus fibrosus the distribution was more even between these two cell types. bFGF was expressed in the anterior annulus fibrosus more often in chondrocyte-like disc cells than in fibroblast-like disc cells. Control discs showed cellular immunopositivity for only TGFbeta-1 and -2 and TGFbeta receptor type II. We suggest that growth factors create a cascade in intervertebral disc tissue, where they act and participate in cellular remodelling from the normal resting stage via disc degeneration to disc herniation.
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Description of a workshop entitled "Sharing Guidelines for Low Back Pain Between Primary Health Care Providers: Toward a Common Message in Primary Care" that was held at the Fifth International Forum on Low Back Pain in Primary Care in Canada in May 2002. Despite a considerable degree of acceptance of current evidence-based guidelines, in practice, primary health care providers still do not share a common message. The objective of the workshop was to describe the outcomes of a workshop on the sharing of guidelines in primary care. ⋯ Research is needed from local implementation pilots and quality monitoring studies to understand how to develop and deliver the contextual understanding required. This relates to processes of care as well as outcomes, and to social factors and policymaking as well as health care interventions. We commend these considerations to all who are interested in the challenges of achieving better-integrated, evidence-based care for people with back pain.
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The authors retrospectively reviewed a series of 18 hard thoracic herniated discs (HTHD) operated by thoracoscopy. Isolated cases of HTHD have been reported in the literature, but no series describing these lesions has been published. Seventy-two percent of the herniated discs were situated between T8 and T12. ⋯ The lesion was intradural in three patients (17%) and adherent to the dura mater in eight (44%). Among these 11 patients, surgery was complicated by a dural tear in the first seven that led to a high risk of cerebrospinal fluid fistula: four of these seven patients had required surgical revision. In the last four, the zone of adhesion of the HTHD to the dura mater was preserved, successfully preventing dural tear.